Leaf & Grain Is Open at the Shops at Houston Center

Commitment to quality is changing the lunch scene.

A family-built menu and homemade dressings are at the heart of Leaf & Grain, a new spot that gives lunch breakers a different option away from the cafeteria line. Located in the Shops at Houston Center downtown, you’ll have to venture up to the far end of the fourth floor to find Leaf & Grain. But the line of customers wrapping around the corner during prime lunch hours speaks for itself.

Hearty salads and grain bowls fill the menu, translating to a meal that's fast, healthy and affordable. Yes, you read that right—we’re calling salads "hearty." Customers can pick a pre-made salad or bowl from the menu for under $15, or create their own. Toppings comprise the freshest ingredients, including steak from 44 Farms. As for their dressings, they're made in-house everyday from scratch. Owner Deets Hoffman says his mother came up with all the recipes, including honey-white balsamic, spicy Thai almond and barbecue Caesar.

Hoffman and his team’s unrelenting commitment to quality sets Leaf and Grain apart from some of the other healthy options, like Salata, Freshii and Snap Kitchen, in the Houston Center. “If that means throwing things out well before we have to, or making sure we’re sourcing from the right places, we’re fine to make sure we’re going above and beyond to do that,” Hoffman says.